First Moto X ad due tomorrow is all about freedom to customize. 'Merica!

We're likely getting close to the release of the Motorola Moto X, which our source has consistently said would be released in July/August. Now, there's a new ad that has leaked out that looks to be the first ad for the Moto X. It is a full page ad that is obviously due to run tomorrow, and it's all about freedom, not to mention taking a jab at Apple that Motorola's phones are "designed, engineered and assembled in the USA". 'Merica!

It's obvious that the ad is designed to run tomorrow, because it refers to the 4th of July as "tomorrow", which is when (according to the ad) you'll "eat burgers, watch fireworks and celebrate the freedom to be whoever you want to be." Grammatical awkwardness aside, the ad goes on to drop the good news, calling the Moto X:

The first smartphone that you can design yourself. Because today you should have the freedom to design the things in your life to be as unique as you are.

It's unclear exactly what kind of customization options will be available. We've heard before that customers will be given the choice of over 20 colors for the phone, and there have been unconfirmed rumors about various hardware customization options like storage capacity, amount of RAM, and even the case material. We'll just have to wait and see on all that.

The ad unfortunately doesn't have an image of the phone, but rather two generic white people jumping into a lake. And, it also doesn't mention when we'll see the phone itself, leaving it simply as "Moto X. Coming soon." Although, a very observant reader did point out that the man and woman jumping into the lake do seem to be in an 'X' and 'I' shape. So, if you wanted to read into it, you might try to guess that the device would be announced on July 11th, since XI is the roman numeral for 11. It's a bit of a stretch, but we do know that Google likes hiding numbers in things, so it's always possible.

Eh, everyone's such a Debbie Downer today. I think it would be awesome if we could build phones the same way we can build PCs. Unnecessary power and extremely expensive: what's more American than that?

You're asking for a bit too much here, Troll, you can't expect every new phone that comes out to completely break the barrier on specs like you always do.

64 GB of storage is reasonable

4 GB of RAM is pretty far away

OMAP seems to be out of the game, the only A15 based processors they have are dual core, and Tegra 4 doesn't seem ready for consumer devices

For a 5" display to have 570 ppi you would need a 2560x1440 display (580 ppi), and that shouldn't be here until next year or the year after, way too soon for the Moto X launch.

Sapphire glass is still pretty expensive, so manufacturers probably wouldn't use it.

The SGX554MP4 is strictly for tablets. Way to power hungry for phones, even with Motorola's Maxx batteries. If they do use a next gen SoC that features PowerVR, I would think it would be from the Rogue series and be dual core.

I actually would like to believe that Motorola would raise their Maxx status. 3,300 mAh is still insane, but after 2 years I want them to make an advancement.

Good speakers and triple mics are reasonable

Not sure about the 100 Hz refresh rate

I would welcome the camera if Sony would be willing to sell it to Motorola.

Of course he knows Apple products are designed here. Thanks to their new corn-ball ads how could anyone NOT know that they're "Designed in California"? (A fake tear just rolled down my face just from thinking about those ads.)

That doesn't stop what Moto's doing from being a DEFINITE jab at Apple, given their recent aforementioned ad-campaign + the Fourth o' July coming up. Appealing to the American appeal to "made in the USA" is generally a pretty good move.

Just because something isn't made in America doesn't mean it isn't quality. A lot of luxurious things people enjoy aren't American made. Swiss watches aren't made in America. Royals Royce isn't made in America.

Most of our most "reliable" cars are not made in America, or at least based in America.

Motorola can take as many jabs as they want but they will soon see that being "made in America" is just a slogan than costs more to maintain than the limited benefit it provides.

Don't forget: now that Moto is a "Google Company" they can afford to sell these things at losses. Google doesn't strike me as a company too concerned about losing a few hundred million dollars if they can explore a newly formed market segment (i.e. "build-a-phone"). A lot more goes into this than merely the bottom line of the balance sheet.

They're only able to do that because they have a monopoly in the search and advertising market. They make billions off advertising, searching, and other related business models. If they were someone like Samsung, GE, or any business that has competition, they wouldn't be able to sustain that model of business for very long.

Let's not forget they have poor distribution since they can not seem to fulfill orders in a timely manner as seen with the Nexus 7 and the Nexus 4.

To your second one: these distribution methods are also products of ASUS and LG's handling of the situation, not just Google's. I'm not saying the Moto X will be any different, but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise.

Seriously? You're gonna pooh pooh "Made in the USA"? Hell, I don't deliberately go after made in USA goods, but I am proud to say my car was built in the US and thus brought money into the hands of blue collar American workers. You have to have your head pretty far up Apple's arse to be so apathetic.

Yes, I did read your comment. You then rattled of a bunch of expensive European luxury goods, as if that somehow negates the fact that Apple uses cheap Chinese labor to maximize profits. Thing is, we're not arguing that "made in the USA" is a mark of quality. We're arguing that is a mark of pride.

As for the iPhone, I respect its straightforward usefulness much more than its luxury cachet.

He's responding to your apathy in general rather than your comment, and I agree. You have had nothing positive to say about this development at all. In fact, I've never seen you say anything positive about anything that isn't Apple-related.

Nobody's claiming that things made outside the US are cheap. Most people buy American not because the quality is better, but because they see it as an obligation to support the society they belong to. Is it counter-intuitive? Maybe. Is it wrong? I don't think so. Again, there's more to living life than straightforward, left-brained financial progress.

Nobody's saying that people who buy non-American goods don't support the society they belong to, and of course there are more ways to contribute to American society.

You keep assuming that I only ascribe to one side of the argument, and I find it kind of insulting, to be honest. I agree with you that outsourcing manufacturing jobs to China is a viable, smart move in some situations. However, there is absolutely NO Infallible Holy Guidebook of Running a Business. I'm defending Motorola's decision in this instance because I find it both innovative and ballsy to buck the current trend of cheaper manufacturing = better.

(And yes, I'm aware of how ironic the phrase "only a Sith deals in absolutes" is.)

nobody is saying Apple doesn't have quality products made just that they aren't made in the US...
anyone insinuating that Moto is taking a jab at Apple is doing so because Motorola is bringing more Jobs to their Homeland which is good and something Apple isn't doing when it comes to production, not that American made Moto products will be higher quality.

I personally respect Moto for losing some money on manufacturing for the good of the American Economy. of course it's not a big difference but they're taking the initiative and creating an example more American companies should follow.

Why should apple bring manufacturing jobs for the iPhone back to America? The cost would be astronomical. Why do that when they can focus on the part on America that has allowed them to succeed, designing new tech.

Last thing Motorola needs is to bleed money to try and appease to a slogan.

i have to ask. where are you from?
sometimes more matters than just manufacturing costs...

you don't think their parent company is investing even just a little bit of money into their endeavors? even just a little bit? really what a little bit would be to Google would see Motorola through their whole product cycle.

But you're suggesting that bringing manufacturing jobs back to America is a bad business practice, at least in Motorola's case. And it's not a matter of quality. The auto industry of late has shown that the playing field has leveled when it comes to quality and reliability. And yes, it may ultimately be a PR tactic. I was skeptical that they could affordably assemble a phone in the US too, because no other US-based company seems able to do it. It doesn't matter to me how or why though, or what their margins are. Even if it's just a PR move, it still creates jobs here.

Was reading Android's Authority's take on this and they seem to confirm what we've been assuming all along with their sources, this will be the first of a kind experience where customising hardware on your phone will become reality, although options will be limited for now (with RAM, battery and processors) and with the playstore playing a crucial key role into how you want to modify your phone to meet your needs. If this is true along with all the promised hi-tech features that Motorola promised, hands down this will be to me, the most revolutionary phone of 2013 until we see the Nexus 5 with key lime pie.

I would definitely jump ship to the X if I plop a big ol' Snapdragon 800 + 1080p 5' SLCD3 + 2GB (or more?) RAM + 3000 mAh battery into it, regardless of when the One comes out. Granted, I'm in no financial position to buy a $600+ unlocked phone right now anyways, so this was really just theoretical.

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